Your search found 5 records
1 Olsson, L.; Jerneck, A. 2010. Farmers fighting climate change - from victims to agents in subsistence livelihoods. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, 1(3):363-373.
Climate change ; Adaptation ; Farmers ; Subsistence farming ; Carbon sequestration ; Land management ; Poverty ; Fuel consumption ; Cooking ; Case studies / Kenya
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: PER Record No: H043238)
(0.29 MB)
One billion vulnerable subsistence farmers across the global south depend on risky livelihoods in need of adaptation to climate change impacts. Simultaneously, their aggregated emission of greenhouse gases from land use and fuelwood consumption is substantial. Synergies between adaptation to climate change and mitigation should therefore be actively promoted. In the context of poverty, such synergies should ideally be designed specifically for the poorest of the poor who are notoriously difficult to reach by policies and projects. In this experimental case on subsistence farming in western Kenya we assume that only the poorest inhabit the most degraded lands and use the simplest form of cooking over open fire. As the study location is typical of sub-Saharan areas affected by drought, flooding, land degradation, diseases and persistent poverty, findings can be scaled up, transferred to and tested in similar settings. Seeking multiple synergies of adaptation, mitigation, and social change while using sustainability science in intervention research, we reframed peasant farmers from vulnerable victims into agents fighting livelihood stressors and climate change impacts. In collaboration with them we performed small-scale experiments on agricultural production practices and domestic energy efficiency resulting in multiple synergies. Findings show that the ‘smokeless kitchen’ and carbon sequestration from improved land management can mitigate climate change while increasing energy efficiency, health standards, food security, and community-based adaptive capacity. Preferably, climate policy should therefore explicitly address synergies and support peasant farmers’ efforts to create synergies when the ‘food imperative’ limits their agency to fight climate change alone.
2 Mekonnen, M. M.; Gerbens-Leenes, P. W.; Hoekstra, A. Y. 2015. The consumptive water footprint of electricity and heat: a global assessment. Environmental Science: Water Research and Technology, 1(3):285-297. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1039/c5ew00026b]
Water footprint ; Water use ; Energy generation ; Water power ; Electricity generation ; Heat ; Energy sources ; Renewable energy ; Geothermal energy ; Nuclear energy ; Fossil fuels ; Fuel consumption ; Supply chain ; Water scarcity
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047596)
(2.12 MB)
Water is essential for electricity and heat production. This study assesses the consumptive water footprint (WF) of electricity and heat generation per world region in the three main stages of the production chain, i.e. fuel supply, construction and operation. We consider electricity from power plants using coal, lignite, natural gas, oil, uranium or biomass as well as electricity from wind, solar and geothermal energy and hydropower. The global consumptive WF of electricity and heat is estimated to be 378 billion m3 per year. Wind energy (0.2–12 m3 TJe -1 ), solar energy through PV (6–303 m3 TJe -1 ) and geothermal energy (7–759 m3 TJe -1 ) have the smallest WFs, while biomass (50 000–500 000 m3 TJe -1 ) and hydropower (300–850 000 m3 TJe -1 ) have the largest. The WFs of electricity from fossil fuels and nuclear energy range between the extremes. The global weighted-average WF of electricity and heat is 4241 m3 TJe -1 . Europe has the largest WF (22% of the total), followed by China (15%), Latin America (14%), the USA and Canada (12%), and India (9%). Hydropower (49%) and firewood (43%) dominate the global WF. Operations (global average 57%) and fuel supply (43%) contribute the most, while the WF of construction is negligible (0.02%). Electricity production contributes 90% to the total WF, and heat contributes 10%. In 2012, the global WF of electricity and heat was 1.8 times larger than that in 2000. The WF of electricity and heat from firewood increased four times, and the WF of hydropower grew by 23%. The sector's WF can be most effectively reduced by shifting to greater contributions of wind, PV and geothermal energy.
3 Asamoah, Bernice; Nikiema, Josiane; Gebrezgabher, Solomie; Odonkor, Elsie; Njenga, M. 2016. A review on production, marketing and use of fuel briquettes. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE). 51p. (Resource Recovery and Reuse Series 07) [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2017.200]
Fuel consumption ; Charcoal ; Briquettes ; Fuelwood ; Urban wastes ; Solid wastes ; Waste management ; Industrial wastes ; Organic wastes ; Recycling ; Faecal sludge ; Sewage sludge ; Renewable energy ; Domestic consumption ; Households ; Cooking ; Energy resources ; Energy generation ; Feedstocks ; Communities ; Biomass ; Environmental impact ; Agricultural sector ; Residues ; Pollution ; Emission ; Developing countries ; Gender ; Women ; Men ; Youth ; Chemicophysical properties ; Carbon ; Raw materials ; Supply chain ; Enterprises ; Marketing ; Retail marketing ; Production costs ; Small scale systems ; Public health ; Economic aspects / East Africa / Ghana / Kenya / Africa South of Sahara
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H047991)
(2 MB)
Where modern heating and cooking fuels for domestic, institutional, commercial and industrial use are not readily available, briquettes made from biomass residues could contribute to the sustainable supply of energy. This study reviews the briquette making process, looking at the entire value chain starting from the type and characteristics of feedstock used for briquette making to the potential market for briquettes in developing countries. It also analyzes the role that gender plays in briquette production. Depending on the raw materials used and technologies applied during production, fuel briquettes come in different qualities and dimensions, and thus require appropriate targeting of different market segments. Key drivers of success in briquette production and marketing include ensuring consistent supply of raw materials with good energy qualities, appropriate technologies, and consistency in the quality and supply of the briquettes. Creating strong partnerships with key stakeholders, such as the municipality, financiers and other actors within the briquette value chain, and enabling policy are important drivers for the success of briquette businesses.
4 Libaisi, J.; Njenga, M. 2018. Biogas as a smart investment for women’s empowerment and livelihood enhancement. In Njenga, M.; Mendum, R. (Eds.). Recovering bioenergy in Sub-Saharan Africa: gender dimensions, lessons and challenges. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE). pp.33-38. (Resource Recovery and Reuse: Special Issue)
Role of women ; Empowerment ; Living standards ; Biogas ; Investment ; Cooking ; Fuel consumption ; Biodigesters ; Farmers organizations ; Households ; Fuelwood
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049005)
(406 KB)
5 Foster, T.; Adhikari, R.; Adhikari, S.; Justice, S.; Tiwari, B.; Urfels, A.; Krupnik, T. J. 2021. Improving pumpset selection to support intensification of groundwater irrigation in the eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains. Agricultural Water Management, 256:107070. (Online first) [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2021.107070]
Groundwater irrigation ; Pumping ; Technology ; Intensification ; Food security ; Energy ; Nexus ; Irrigation systems ; Tube wells ; Fuel consumption ; Supply chains ; Agricultural productivity ; Farmers ; Livelihoods ; Policies / South Asia / India / Nepal / Indo-Gangetic Plains / Rupandehi
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050543)
(5.02 MB)
Intensification of groundwater irrigation is central to goals of improving food security and reducing chronic poverty faced by millions of rural households across the eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains (EIGP) of Nepal and parts of eastern India. At present, levels of groundwater use and access in the EIGP lag far behind other areas of South Asia despite abundant available groundwater resources. A key reason for prevailing access constraints is the dependence on diesel pumpsets for accessing groundwater, which are typically unsubsidised and therefore expensive to purchase and operate. To date, efforts to reduce access costs have focused almost exclusively on how to incentivise adoption of alternative electric or solar-powered pumping technologies, which are viewed as being cheaper to operate and less environmentally damaging due to their lower operational carbon emissions. In contrast, there has been little attention paid to identifying opportunities to make existing diesel pump systems more cost effective for farmers to operate in order to support adaptation to climate change and reduce poverty. In this study, we use evidence from 116 detailed in-situ pump tests along with interviews with pumpset dealers, mechanics and farmers in the Nepal Terai to assess how and why fuel efficiency and operational costs of diesel pump irrigation are affected by farmers’ pumpset selection decisions. We show that costs diesel pumpset irrigation can be reduced significantly by supporting and incentivising farmers (e.g., through equipment advisories, improved supply chains for maintenance services and spare parts) to invest in newer low-cost, portable and smaller horsepower pumpset designs that are more effectively matched to local operating conditions in the EIGP than older Indian manufactured engines that have historically been preferred by farmers in the region. Such interventions can help to unlock potential for intensified irrigation water use in the EIGP, contributing to goals of improving agricultural productivity and resilience to climate extremes while also strengthening farmers capacity to invest in emerging low-carbon pumping technologies.
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